• Home
  • About
  • Around
  • Contributors
  • Applause

Daily Plate of Crazy

  • Relationships
    • Dating
    • Love
    • Marriage
    • Divorce
    • Life After Divorce
  • Parenting
    • Advice
    • Babies and Kids
    • Tweens and Teens
    • College Kids
    • Single Moms
    • Older Moms
    • Dads
    • Family Dynamics
    • Money Matters
    • Work-Life
  • Health
  • Sex
  • Women’s Issues
  • Fashion & Style
    • Chaussures
    • Fashion
    • Style
    • Lingerie
    • Interiors
  • Culture
  • More
    • Art Art Art
    • Business
    • En Français
    • Entertainment
      • Mad Men
      • Mad Men Reviews
      • Real Housewives
      • Movies
      • Celebrities
      • Work of Art Reviews
    • Flash
    • Food & Recipes
    • Lifestyle
    • Morning Musing
    • Starting Over
    • Technology
    • Travel
    • Women and Money
You are here: Home / Business / What’s Your Recipe for Success?

What’s Your Recipe for Success?

June 18, 2015 by D. A. Wolf 1 Comment

One part inspiration, three parts guts? Add five parts hard work, then simmer and stir? Do you know your recipe for success? Do you rely on your own criteria or the opinions of others?

Man With Thumbs UpIn considering my recipe for success, I realize that the ingredients and their importance depend on whether I’m talking about a personal or professional context. When it comes to friendship or romantic relationships, I believe that quality trumps quantity, loyalty is paramount, and time invested is far less of a factor than sharing significant moments together in a real, connective way.

Professionally, success can be reduced to a “classic” list for some: units sold, revenues, market share, growth; rankings, awards, an exclusive coterie of high-end clients. In a context more tangible for many, we might add followers, likes, and shares to that list.

For others, while money is a motivating factor (and necessity), our greatest sense of achievement is in the work itself — both the process and the result.

Don’t get me wrong — money talks, and lights a fire under us at critical times. But success itself is measured by more personal criteria — how we feel about what we’ve accomplished, the difference it may make in our communities, the respect of family and friends. Success — how we define it and how we get there — is certainly a reflection of our personal values.

Whatever you envision as success, what does it take to arrive? What does it take to keep it up?

Try this list from INC, which I find delightful.

In 37 Secrets Only Successful People Know, Geoffrey James offers tips that are extremely practical. Here are a few highlights that I particularly like. From the section on how to control your emotions —

TREAT people as you’d want to be treated.
AVOID depressing people and conversations.
EAT something delicious every day.

Okay. I love that last one! (But remember that Lay’s potato chip commercial? How do you stop at just one?)

Now these suggestions from the same article require a little more thought. Touching on how to eliminate stress, it is recommended that you:

CUT your hours to the “sweet spot,” which is about 40 hours a week.
AVOID people who won’t or can’t control their own stress.
ARRANGE tasks consecutively rather than trying to multitask.

There are a lot of assumptions in those “secrets” to success! To name a few, assumptions relative to control, to money, perhaps even to the pursuit on one career at a time.

That second? I’ll toast to that, although none of us is exempt from reacting to stress at times.

And the third? I’m still feeling my way around that one, but I’m increasingly cognizant of the value and benefits of doing one thing at a time. Or, at the very least, LESS multitasking.

In any of this, circumstances come into play as do temperaments. I know people who only light a fire under their own derrieres when they get angry, or in response to some sort of heated competition. I doubt they’re concerned with surrounding themselves with optimistic people. I know people who thrive on creative chaos, who need noise in the background, and so on.

INC’s list offers additional suggestions on how to earn the respect of your peers, the tips are spot on. Not only in the business world, but in most of our interpersonal dealings. Among the suggestions:

BE yourself
SHARE the limelight
SHOW interest in other people
DRESS and groom to match your ambitions

I find all of the above to be excellent advice for every encounter in every context. Think about it. Don’t we feel more at ease when others accord us air space to speak? Don’t we feel valued when a friend or colleague points out how our efforts have been vital to achieving a mutual goal? Don’t we pay more attention to others we perceive as authentic? And “dressing for success” is a time-honored must.

Smiling Confident African American WomanThere’s a good deal more to this lengthy list, and it’s chock-full of practical items organized into clear, simple sections. It’s an excellent cheat sheet for a wide variety of work-related scenarios, and I strongly recommend giving it a look-see.

What would I add?

  • Consider the company you keep. You will be judged by them, certainly to a degree.
  • When something is over, end clean, but always professionally.
  • Your reputation is built on what you do, what you say, and delivering what you say you will do.
  • Temperament and temper matter; the former may be used to your advantage (if you’re lucky!); the latter must be managed.
  • A good reputation with clients and peers alike is invaluable.

What else?

I admire personal qualities like curiosity, initiative, resourcefulness and humor. I have always found them strongly linked not only to success, but to leading an interesting and fulfilling life. Sure, sometimes these same qualities get us into trouble. But aren’t we bound to get into a little trouble in life anyway? Isn’t that how we learn our most lasting lessons?

Not only do I hope I possess these qualities, but I also seek them out in co-workers and friends. In my experience, we’re more likely to achieve more, discover new ways to accomplish our tasks, uncover new opportunities, and enjoy the process.

So what’s the secret to your success? What would you add to this extensive list of tips?

 

You May Also Enjoy

  • Curious?
  • The Benefits of Doing One Thing at a Time
  • Perks, Praise and Pay: Why Money Talks
  • The Company You Keep

 

FacebooktwitterpinterestlinkedinmailFacebooktwitterpinterestlinkedinmail

Filed Under: Business Tagged With: Business, definitions of success, INC, motivation, productivity, success, work life

Comments

  1. Rudri Bhatt Patel @ Being Rudri says

    June 18, 2015 at 9:27 am

    Such wisdom in the article you mentioned and your post. I love what you say about ending clean. It is always a better option in my mind. It is a way to teach our kids kindness, integrity and opportunity to demonstrate our strength of character when things turn sour.

    Reply

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

 

This site uses Akismet to reduce spam. Learn how your comment data is processed.

Follow Us

FacebooktwitterrssinstagramFacebooktwitterrssinstagram

Search Daily Plate of Crazy

Subscribe for Your Daily Serving

Enter your email address:

Delivered by FeedBurner

Categories

Archives

Recent Comments

  • TD on What’s Cookin’?
  • Renee on Narcissism. Manipulation. Keeping Score.
  • Anonymous on Does Effort Matter If You Don’t Get Results?
  • D. A. Wolf on Mantras
  • D. A. Wolf on Over 50, Unemployed, Depressed and Powerless
  • Marty on When You Marry a Loner
  • Tina on Would You Brag About Your Age?
  • Sal on Over 50, Unemployed, Depressed and Powerless
  • Open More Doors If You Want More Skills - 3 Plus International on Open More Doors If You Want More Skills
  • Leonora C on Over 50, Unemployed, Depressed and Powerless
  • Maree on Mantras
  • kate on DON’T Call Me Dear!

The Makeover Series

Daily Plate of Crazy: The Makeover Series

Essays From Guest Writers

Daily Plate of Crazy: Essay Series

Daily Reads

Daily Plate of Crazy Blogroll

Follow

Follow

Notices

All content on this site, DailyPlateOfCrazy.com, is copyrighted by D. A. Wolf unless copyright is otherwise attributed to guest writers. Do not use, borrow, repost or create derivative works without permission.

© D. A. Wolf 2009-2025. All Rights Reserved.

Parlez-vous francais?

Daily Plate of Crazy: En Français

© D. A. Wolf 2009-2025
All Rights Reserved

Daily Plate of Crazy ™

Privacy Notice

Popular This Month

  • 50 Years old and Starting Over
  • Best Places to Live When You're Over 50 and Reinventing
  • When the Person You Love Is Emotionally Unavailable
  • When a Couple Wants Different Things
  • How to Comfort Someone Who Is Stressed

Food for Thought

  • Why I Choose to Think Like a Man
  • When You Marry a Loner
  • Emotionally Needy Parents
  • Sex vs. Lovemaking: Why Are We So Confused?
  • Think Looks Don't Pay?
  • Rebranding Mediocrity: Why Good Enough Isn't Good Enough

Copyright © 2025 · Metro Pro Theme on Genesis Framework · WordPress · Log in

This site uses cookies for the best browsing experience. By continuing to use this site, you accept our Cookie Policy.
Cookie SettingsACCEPT
Manage consent

Privacy Overview

This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary
Always Enabled
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. These cookies ensure basic functionalities and security features of the website, anonymously.
CookieDurationDescription
cookielawinfo-checkbox-analytics11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Analytics".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-functional11 monthsThe cookie is set by GDPR cookie consent to record the user consent for the cookies in the category "Functional".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-necessary11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookies is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Necessary".
cookielawinfo-checkbox-others11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Other.
cookielawinfo-checkbox-performance11 monthsThis cookie is set by GDPR Cookie Consent plugin. The cookie is used to store the user consent for the cookies in the category "Performance".
viewed_cookie_policy11 monthsThe cookie is set by the GDPR Cookie Consent plugin and is used to store whether or not user has consented to the use of cookies. It does not store any personal data.
Functional
Functional cookies help to perform certain functionalities like sharing the content of the website on social media platforms, collect feedbacks, and other third-party features.
Performance
Performance cookies are used to understand and analyze the key performance indexes of the website which helps in delivering a better user experience for the visitors.
Analytics
Analytical cookies are used to understand how visitors interact with the website. These cookies help provide information on metrics the number of visitors, bounce rate, traffic source, etc.
Advertisement
Advertisement cookies are used to provide visitors with relevant ads and marketing campaigns. These cookies track visitors across websites and collect information to provide customized ads.
Others
Other uncategorized cookies are those that are being analyzed and have not been classified into a category as yet.
SAVE & ACCEPT